Frank Woodruff's Bird Watching Class Outdoors in Lincoln Park

The Chicago Academy of Sciences (now housed at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum) offers many outdoor opportunities, including classes like those conducted by Frank Woodruff (1867-1926). This image depicts Woodruff's bird identification class in Lincoln Park, possibly near the Chicago Academy of Sciences’ Laflin Building at Armitage and Clark. In addition to serving as Academy director from 1896 to 1925, Woodruff was also an ornithologist and curator at the Academy and wrote Birds of the Chicago Region in 1907. The Chicago Academy of Sciences published that book and many others, committing itself to education and scholarship. This commitment to education included programming for young students as seen here, as well as continuing education and certification for teachers in order for them to better understand and teach the natural sciences. The Academy started offering regular free lectures in 1907 and opened up a children's library in 1911.